This year has been quite the year for Robert Pattinson. Following the worldwide success of 2019’s The Lost Sea, the intense media activity surrounding his personal life has largely subsided, allowing him to focus on his acting career and personal projects.
Personal Life
Aside from his movie career, Pattinson has been quite active on social media, constantly posting and sharing content regarding his family, friends, and travels. On June 25th, the actor announced the birth of his first child, a girl named Florence. She arrived by cesarean section on June 25th and weighed 7 pounds, 13 ounces. It was also revealed that Pattinson and his wife had been trying for a baby for a while.
The actor has also been quite busy off-camera too, having been spotted at various film festivals and premieres around the world. While most of his public appearances have been for his movies, he has also been spotted on camera at various events, including the premiere of The Lure, the premiere of The Commuter, and the premiere of The House of Gucci. In November, he finally made his long-awaited debut at the U.K.’s prestigious royal premiere, joining Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles for the premiere of Disney’s Aladdin.
Movies
As previously mentioned, Pattinson’s cinematic career kicked off in 2019 with the worldwide hit The Lost Sea. The movie was a critical and box office success, earning rave reviews and becoming one of the biggest hits of the year. Based on Patrick Ness’s bestselling trilogy of the same name, the movie followed the story of Jim Corbett (Pattinson), a hunter who teams up with a group of animals to save them from extinction. It was directed by William Kibbey and featured an ensemble cast, including Will Kemp, Michael Sheen, and Tom Hardy. The Guardian hailed it as “one of the most affecting films of the year”, while The New York Times wrote, “The movie is a heart-wrenching odyssey through loss and grief that draws you in from the first frames and never lets go.” In the U.S., The Lost Sea was the highest-grossing independent film of the year, raking in $33 million at the box office.
The critically acclaimed Australian director George Rose signed on to helm Pattinson’s next movie project, the action thriller The Commuter. Based on the debut novel of the same name by Jack McKinney, the film follows Richard Rawlings, a disgraced ex-cop who travels to Melbourne to settle his scores with the criminals he once arrested. In a plot reminiscent of Godfather II, Richard seeks to take the law into his own hands, determined to mete out vigilante justice to the thugs who have caused him so much trouble. Mark Wahlberg, who produced the film with Rose, stated that, “There’s a reason why this book [The Commuter] hasn’t been made into a movie before: It’s because it’s unlike any other. This is a real page-turner, and it’s been a while since we’ve seen something original and satisfying.”
The action comedy The House of Gucci, starring Emily Blunt and Radha Mitchell, followed in early 2020. The movie is the story of two fashionistas who travel to Italy to celebrate the designer’s 90th anniversary. There, they meet the eccentric descendants of the designer and are embroiled in a battle of wits and wills over the future of the company. Blunt plays Lady Emily, a wealthy heiress who grew up in the limelight and is looking for a way to escape her privileged lifestyle. Mitchell plays Gucci designer Dorota, who grew up poor in Romania and is passionate about preserving the designer’s legacy. The movie marked Blunt and Mitchell’s collaboration directorial debut, and they both took to social media to express their delight at working together.
Television
Aside from his movie career, Pattinson has also been a frequent presence on television. In November 2019, he made his big-screen debut in the action thriller Black Widow, starring alongside Claudia Robinson and Tony Goldwyn. Based on the popular Marvel Comics character, the film follows Natasha Romanova, a Russian spy who becomes a contract killer for hire. The Daily Mail praised the actor’s “viable” take on the character, stating that, “Pattinson embodies the cool, collected and slightly sinister nature of the character perfectly.”
Next up for Pattinson is the black comedy Dead on the Road, in which he plays a zombie-phobic husband who gets trapped with his family on an all-road trip during a zombie apocalypse. The film is directed by Ulli Lommel and is based on the popular German podcast of the same name. The production companies behind the show and film are talking up the potential for a second season.
While these projects have primarily been directed by British artists, Pattinson has also lent his voice to several animated features — his very first role as an animated character being the character of Mr. Peepers in 2012’s The Magic Flute. Since then, he has gone on to provide the voices of several characters in films such as Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse, My Little Pony: Equestria Girls, and most recently, Marvel’s Eternals. He also recently wrapped filming on the highly anticipated animated feature How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.
Royal Debut
In November 2019, Pattinson finally made his long-awaited debut at the U.K. premiere for Disney’s live-action adaptation of Aladdin. Based on the 1992 animated classic, the film stars Will Smith as the Genie, alongside with Mena Massoud and Jasmine Matić in the title roles. Smith’s casting in the movie was met with widespread criticism from fans due to previous racist and problematic tweets. However, representatives for Disney have since defended the actor, stating that he has “seen the error of his ways” and “learned from his mistakes.” Following the premier, Smith took to Twitter to apologize for his alleged past tweets.
Pattinson’s cinematic endeavors don’t end here, as he also signed on to star in the upcoming Netflix movie The King, a biopic about the life of Ethiopian King Haile Selassie. The film is currently in production and is set for release in May 2021.
In the near future, Pattinson can be seen in the upcoming movie The Gucci Exchange, released in theaters on May 14th, alongside with Radha Mitchell. Based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Mark Binelli, the film follows a young American woman named Luce, who finds herself in a bit of a quandary when her passport expires and she is temporarily unable to leave the country.
Luce meets Patrick, a young man from Singapore who offers her a way out of her predicament. With their newfound friendship and romantic aspirations tested, will Luce and Patrick be able to persevere through their differences and make a go of it in America together?